Google Plus is Dying - What Now?

[JoyHawkins]

We all knew it was coming...Google has announced that it's shutting down Google Plus.

As a response, we are going to slowly close down our Local Search Pros group on G+ and we are starting a Facebook Group to take it's place.

What steps are you taking for your clients as a result of this news (if any)?

Jamie Pitman from BrightLocal pointed out that you should remove G+ sharing buttons from client websites. I just created tasks to do that for all our clients starting next month.

 

[Phil Rozek]

@JoyHawkins, I wrote a blog post about this a couple days ago (not long before BrightLocal did), and mentioned a few additional things:

1. Making sure to update any "Review us on Google+"-type links. Not that "write a review" links that point to a Plus page have worked for some time.

2. Scouring the site for any other mentions of or links to Plus.

3. Sleeping with one eye open regarding GMB posts.

4. Prioritizing content on your site over content you post on third-party platforms.

 

[JoyHawkins]

OMG Phil your blog post photo!!! I need to brace myself before opening them lol.

I missed your post but thanks for sharing!

 

[Phil Rozek]

Glad I didn't choose the real gory one I was considering

 

[Ryan Raplee]

That photo... yikes.

It's hard to believe it took them this long to shut it down.

 

[RebNooch]

@JoyHawkins, I wrote a blog post about this a couple days ago (not long before BrightLocal did), and mentioned a few additional things:

3. Sleeping with one eye open regarding GMB posts.

Please elaborate...

 

[Phil Rozek]

@RebNooch
GMB posts may go poof, too.

 

[Doublet7t]

@Phil Rozek I read your blog post and I thought it had great insights on how to move away from Google +. The good news for me I didn't really do a whole lot with Google + ; however, I do a lot with GMB post. I don't have any stats on it as if holds water for ranking, but it can help expand the billboard for my client's. Why do you think GMB posts would also be cut?

 

[Phil Rozek]

Thanks for saying so, @Doublet7t.

It's for a few reasons my guess is that GMB posts' days are numbered:

1. Google kills off features constantly, particularly in the local results.

2. Whenever Google promotes something hard (as it has for GMB posts) it's never simply because Google wants to help business owners. There's always another shoe to drop. When something's good, and free, and you use it, the user is the product. (Not that any of that is necessarily bad.)

3. Google's already experimenting (at least) with sticking GMB posts in a less-visible part of the knowledge panel.

 

[djbaxter]

Google accelerating demise of Plus after new security flaw affected 52 million
CBC News
Dec 11, 2018

Plus service will close in April, some 4 months ahead of the original plan

Google is still having trouble protecting the personal information on its Plus service, prodding the company to accelerate its plans to shut down a little-used social network created to compete against Facebook.

A privacy flaw that inadvertently exposed the names, email addresses, ages and other personal information of 52.5 million Google Plus users last month convinced Google to close the service in April instead of August, as previously announced. Google revealed the new closure date and its latest privacy lapse in a Monday blog post .